Aristocracy: Fujino's Failure
by Sombereyes
Summary: A beautiful woman dressed in white dances, and they say she is the most beautiful woman on the planet. A beautiful woman dressed in red dances, they call her a vixen, or a lady of the night. So what, I wonder, does that make this woman?
1. Chapter 1

A/N: A two part short story. Chapter Two will be out later this week.

 **Aristocracy: Fujino's Failure  
Chapter 1 of 2**

A beautiful woman dressed in white dances, and they say she is the most beautiful woman on the planet. A beautiful woman dressed in red dances, they call her a vixen, or a lady of the night. In black, she is a contemporary beauty, and in sunny yellow, she is most at peace with herself.

All of these colors, a wardrobe, all of them containing feelings and emotions exclusive to the woman underneath it all.

My mother told me this as a child, between her nurturing nature and blue-blooded bias. It was a distance that held me within strict expectation. She was gentle to me always, but prim and proper to a fault. She was the kind of woman who expressed difficulty with hugs, but could easily titter on for hours while doing my hair, nails, and make-up. Through long afternoons of tea, we would speak of the merits of aristocracy, and the power held by men, such as the type I was to marry.

In this, she spoke a great deal about my duties as a woman. One afternoon particularly held a strong spot in my memory.

"Wear white, and never wear red."

She said that to me on her sick bed, and I was not able to deny the request. I wanted to make her proud, follow in her footsteps.

And I did.

I idolized her as a child, took in her words hungrily… Felt the burning need to live up to those words, her expectations mounting onto my shoulders one by one, until I could no longer escape. Nor, did I want to. I became attracted to the fundamentals of beauty, both simple and complex.

And, just like my mother told me, I stayed away from the color red.

Yet, even I was not perfect, because my eyes were crimson colored. It was the single exception I was allowed to make for myself. I'd wanted the soft blue eyes of my mother to compliment my fawn colored hair and fair skin.

Yet, red was what befell me, and the color of my eyes was the one thing I could not escape.

It seemed a vice…

It is a vice.

I know this now.

Red and I will always mix, will always be tied down, together, inescapably.

…  
(The Suzushiro Estate)

"A hot bed of corruption I tell you!"

"Oh, come now, corruption? Is that all you can say about this?

"Well, it isn't as if we didn't anticipate a scandal amongst the flock. A family can only remain pure for so long after all."

"Yes, that's true, but to deny a marriage proposal…"

"What do you think about it Shizuru?"

"...Shizuru?"

I turned to two women who'd been beside me instead of gallivanting around with many of the eligible men. "Yes?"

"Well, what do you think?"

"Yes, indeed...You must have a concern, don't you Shizuru?"

I raised my eyebrow. "What was the particular topic at hand?"

The rather tall and busty silver haired woman next to me sighed, rolling her eyes. "Come now, Shizuru, weren't you listening at all?"

"If I were at all interested in gossip, I just might." I sighed equally at length, but for an entirely different reason. They almost made me lose sight of the beauty I'd been watching.

"Haruka, my dear, is the topic of our concern." Anh replied as she sipped on a rather good year of wine. "You do know that she denied a marriage request, don't you?"

"So goes the rumor." I was neither invested nor concerned about that. "However, is this truly the place to discuss such an insulting thing to her personal honor?"

"As her good friend, doesn't that concern you?" The other blonde said.

All three of us were close to Haruka in our own ways. Anh Lu was a tutor of ours in our younger years, and very much like an older sister. Sara Gallagher, a junior of ours, feared for Haruka's wellbeing. She took it as a personal duty of hers to rid Haruka of each and every malapropism that the woman seemed to come up with, and that list was a great many.

Looking between the two of them, I saw nothing more than fear for Haruka's wellbeing, and I felt chastised because of it. "It does, but it concerns me even more that she denied the suitor."

"You know who it was?" Anh was shocked when I nodded. "Who was it, Shizuru?"

Discretion was key, I dared not mention his name. Thankfully my eye could locate him easily, as he seemed to be trying to befriend my newest heartthrob. I nodded his way. "It was him, so, you see why it comes as a difficult thing for me to discuss."

I walked away then, towards one of the many extravagantly filled tables. I needed something to soothe my mind, and perhaps a bit of fruit might help.

The man beside my paramour is one Reito Kanzaki, a rather wealthy individual; as flirtatious as he is shrewd. He's the type of man that can't go far without a gaggle of girls flocking behind him. He's the full package; tall, dark, and handsome. I lift my wine to my lips, minding my own business. It really isn't any of my concern if he charms the girl or not. He means nothing by it, nothing particularly harmful, anyway.

I was not alone, it seems as if Haruka overheard the murmuring. "You didn't have to do that, Fujino…coming to my defense only makes me look week, I'll have you know!"

I gave her a rather knowing glance. "I chose to do so because they care deeply about you."

"Deeply enough to talk behind my back?"

I knew she would not understand, her position was in a risky place. "Deeply enough, I believe. They feel the urgent need to support your endeavors. They will help in any way they can."

"So, about the arrangement, you agree with me, don't you?" Haruka was a woman I considered a friend, in spite of the way she blathered onward about the one thing I didn't want to discuss.

I turned to look at her, such an intense woman, this blonde, almost a brute truly. "When I agreed to allocate some of my funds for your cause, I expressly did so under the assumption that you'd be put at ease." I smiled then, "it seems you are not."

Haruka frowned at me, rolling her eyes in that all too haughty way of hers. "You allotted coin to my coffers so that I could help renovate the city streets. You had no intention of 'putting me at ease' as you say."

That was indeed true to some extent, but not all of it was true. I partook a slice of cheese from her plate plopping it into my mouth with a self-satisfied little grin. "My intention was pure, of that my dear friend, I can promise you."

"Hogwash…" Haruka muttered darkly, pointing a finger to the tip of my nose. "There's nothing pure about you Shizuru Fujino, and the moment you stop sending airs, the better for us all."

"Speaking of air, yours is quite hot tonight," I said to her as casually as one could, given our history. "Might I ask who offended you?"

"Kanzaki," Haruka said to me flippantly, "who else?"

It didn't surprise me, and my eyes drifted once more to the woman he took interest in. Clearly, he was trying to entertain the notion of accompanying her. Soon she was called away, and I almost feel bad for him as he watched her leave. "Reito means no harm, not usually. He is so troublesome to your being?"

"I will not marry such an heir."

"He has more fortune than you'd ever truly need."

"Who says I need more? Look at the man, a filthy swine I tell you."

"Careful now, Haruka, you wouldn't want him to take offense."

Looking at me as if I were stupid, she let loose one of her more insane questions. "Why would he take a fence?"

"Offense, Haruka, not a fence," I murmur kindly. While the image of Reito trying to upheave one of the territory walls was somewhat amusing, I merely sighed at her. I'm glad she's not a great imbiber of the drink, and always takes hers watered. One could only imagine the slips of her tongue whilst inebriated. "You wouldn't want to insult his character, or insinuate that he acts poorly under the circumstances. He is a good man, a bit of a playful scamp in his own ways, but a good man none the less."

"Says the woman who denied him first," Haruka said to me with a glare.

In that, Haruka was undeniably correct.

As the sole heir to the Fujino fortune, I find myself receiving more requests to wed as time goes on. I've no keepers though, so I retain the right to deny any and all advances on my own behalf. This is fitting to me, as I have no intention of getting married. Befitting for Reito too, that I denied him so easily. Unfortunately, Haruka still has retainers, and her parents are both alive and well spirited, making it complicated for her at every turn.

She is from a lesser family though, and as such, to deny Reito would be an insult to his personal gain, which from her family would be marginal at best. Still, we were childhood friends, the three of us. That offers a strangely strong argument in both directions.

Considering this, I excuse myself from my good friend's side and make my way out to the rather large and empty balcony.

"I have not yet made the acquaintance," I say to the carrot topped woman who found herself standing near the white stone railing. "Allow me to introduce myself. I'm Shizuru Fujino, relative to the Viola family line."

Looking at me with surprise, she offered a rather informal introduction. "I'm Mai Tokiha."

The name had never once crossed my mind before. "A foreign dynasty perhaps?" I offered jovially.

"No, merely from the Tokiha family. West end district."

That honestly confused me, at it must have shown clearly on my face. She was not of poor means surely, not if she hailed from the west end, but she was neither a blue blood. Newly amused, a found a grin tugging at my lips. "I never would have guessed."

"That's kind of you to say," she laughed simply. I knew then, that she didn't believe me. She was far too amused. "I'm sure that I'm out of place here, I came with a friend."

Ah, an escort, that made a bit more sense. "To whom are you accompanying this evening?"

"Natsuki Kuga," she said to me simply, adding with a laugh "only as a friend of course. She promised another friend of hers that she's come for appearances sake, but Natsuki hates formal affairs."

I felt a renewed sense of surprise. "Natsuki Kuga..." I knew that name well. Very well, if I were being honest. "Of the Kruger family line?"

She nodded as I felt beyond baffled.

"She more than loathes them. Her family, and these types of parties...not to mention casual acquaintances." I said to the girl named Mai. "That this gathering is hosted by the Suzushiro family only adds to Natsuki's ire. I fear for her, truly."

"So she said during the carriage ride, you know her well?"

"We attended the same academy as children, and spent a great deal of time together." This woman, Mai, she was very easy to talk to. Unaware of the current scandal, clearly disinterested in the social order of things, and not invested with whom to address with high honors. "Natsuki is not a very sociable person though, so I wonder how you came to know her personally."

She couldn't be a maid for the household, Natsuki hated hired help, and she most certainly wasn't some sort of appeasement either. Natsuki didn't bother herself with something as trivial as flirtation. Natsuki was a scholar through and through, uppity as could be in matter of the heart, and this woman was no passing interest to my good friend, or else I'd have caught wind of the matter.

At least, I assumed I would have.

"The same way I run into all riff-raff Shizuru," Natsuki said as she pushed her way past me to offer Mai a newly filled glass of wine. "She doesn't know when to shut her mouth either."

"A blessing you made it at all, Natsuki." I said as I reached over to smooth the deep crease upon her forehead. "Perhaps you shouldn't frown so much."

She swatted my hand away with a bit more force than needed. "I wouldn't have to frown if it wasn't for that bleating idiot in the other room. That jackass Kanzaki is making himself known like a hung stallion, it's degrading."

Mai looked between us with confused humor. "Dare I ask?"

"Reito Kanzaki," I supplied. "The tall black haired man that was trying to gather your attention earlier."

"In the white suit?" Mai asked, causing Natsuki to roll her eyes.

"That's him," Natsuki sighed. "Avoid him."

"I found his banter quite amusing, honestly," Mai said as she sipped her wine.

Naturally, I had to agree, he is a rather enjoyable person to be around. Quick wit, sharp tongue, impeccable sense of timing and good natured humor.

"It's that Natsuki doesn't take kindly to his advances," I explained giving Natsuki a knowing wink. "It has nothing to do with his personality."

"Except that it does." Natsuki muttered back to me. "The man is a right snob."

"Abrasive as always, Natsuki," I shake my head, and looked to Mai. "So, tell me, truly, how did you come to meet?"

"A mutual friend," Mai said to me. "My historical studies professor."

I could only think of one person who taught historical studies that Natsuki would even bother to know, and suddenly broke out in a laugh. "Well, science and history never do get along very well, now do they?"

We shared a few more laughs, mostly at Natsuki's expense, but she had always been a good sport about such things, as they were nothing new to her. Mai was a novelty though. Such a person that I never expected to take an interest in. She was an intellectual, surely, but not quite to Natsuki's level, and it was clear to me that Mai had no intention to be either.

The night went better than I could have planned as it came to a close well after the midnight chime. Somehow, I'd easily spent a good handful of hours in the company of that redhead named Mai, her name and voice lingering in my mind the next day.

...  
(Fujino Manor)

I had my own life to attend to, and didn't think deeply on the matters that surrounded Haruka's evening ball, nor the charity banquet that had been announced. The phone at my desk rang a few times, a most willing distraction. I lifted the receiver to greet whatever caller might have been waiting on the other end of the line.

"Three rings, that means you were distracted."

I smiled, of course Natsuki would take the hint. We were fairly close in our younger years, closer still, due to our busy lives that kept us distracted. "I was indeed, but to what do I owe this pleasure? You rarely use the phone when a letter will do just fine."

She made an agitated noise. "Even if I were to send the messenger, you'd take too long to reply."

I could hear rustling on the other end, as if she were flitting through another one of her incredibly long research documents. It was not an uncommon practice. "Ah, business it is then. A pity really, I was hoping you might find the courtesy to invite me to lunch."

"When have you ever known me to be courteous?" Natsuki snorted indignantly. "You should know me better than that, but back to the topic at hand. I was wondering if you might have kept any of your father's old ledgers. The ones he sloppily write out in his boredom..."

"Hm, a few." Admitting that wasn't easy, since I never opened them. It was an odd question from Natsuki though. "I'm no historian, but he fancied the old texts quite a bit. I'd assume all of them are accurate, given his love of perfection in every form."

"I thought so." Natsuki sounded nearly excised. "I'd like to come by and use them as a reference, if you wouldn't mind."

"Rifling through old bones again are you?" I asked with a soft chuckle.

"Fossils, Shizuru, fossils… Do you mind?"

Of course I didn't, and Natsuki had to have known that. "My study is your study, Natsuki. All of my father's books are exactly where he left them. A sane and logical human being would have likely packed them away, but I just can't be bothered. You're welcome to toil away to your heart's content."

"Wonderful, I'll be by sometime tomorrow to take a look."

Natsuki Kuga was, as many in the fold would come to call it, an odd duck.

A woman driven by adversity in a field of study that was very much dominated by males. My father was one such male interested by intellect, driven by discovery. Our friendship was one of convenience at first. I wanted her attention, she wanted my father's tutelage, it was merely a professional acquaintanceship at first, in spite of my desire for it to become more than that.

Natsuki was always kind to me, but withdrawn and disinterested in the things I had to say to her.

My father teased her often about not knowing her place in world, a trait he often argued was passed down by her mother. Natsuki would rebuttal that the world was not yet ready to see the merits of a woman's mind, and that eventually the old fogeys would have to stand aside for the new generation. She would go so far as to say that it would include women, and I believe in some small facet she designed to take my father's place in the world when he was no longer able.

I was fine with that, and as adults our friendship grew deeply after his death, a closeness that rivaled any other type of friendship I'd ever before experienced. I once joked that if Natsuki were a man, she would be my husband.

With her usual annoyed glance, she pointedly reminded me that I had no inclination to marry a man, and that if she was, in fact male, she would have attained piece of mind.

Natsuki had never once addressed my sexuality before that day, or my direct interest in her, but I knew then that Natsuki also thought very little of it. Frankly, that was more of a comfort that I'd ever truly admit, and I continued to flirt with her even more heavily when I realized she wouldn't be bothered by my troublesome behavior.

I looked forward to harassing her again the day off her arrival, but when I noticed Mai at her side, I found myself unable to do so.

"She'll be cooped up like that until nightfall." I said as I closed the large double doors to the library. "My father once thought her capable of reading through osmosis."

"Sounds enough like her." Mai agreed as we stepped onto the large sitting room that I often ignored. "I hope I'm not being a hindrance to your afternoon plans."

"Hardly, I was merely going to read the day away myself." I was not a very good host when it came to formal parties, and also cooped myself up in the same little study. Today, however, I opened the door to my personal music room. We sat side-by-side in the piano nook, and I began to titter away at the keys absently. "Natsuki knows me well, perhaps better than I know myself."

"Perceptive…" Mai laughed then, only to shake her head and fold her hands in her lap. "She knows me well too. Well enough to know I'd begin to tidy her flat if given half the chance."

"It could probably use a good sweep." I admitted, Natsuki was many things, tidy wasn't one of them. "Still, to clean house in a dress as pretty as that…"

"This?" A blush crept to her cheeks. "It's nothing."

"Modesty becomes you." I said with great amusement. Mai did look very beautiful. I thought so the night of the party at Haruka's, and I thought so now. "Perhaps, though, you'll fancy my company enough to leave it behind."

She laughed at this, making my heart speed up just a fraction.

"You lie." She grinned.

"I wish I were." I said to her honestly.

I wasn't giving her any sort of false pretense. The brightly colored sundress complimented her figure well, the neckline was a tad higher than my pervading eyes desired it to be though. It was not as elegant as her gown that I found her in at the ball, but I decided that those bright colors suited her more than they ever did me. Blues, greens, yellows, all colors likely uplifted this woman, I could not think of a happy color that wouldn't.

In that, she was very much unlike me, pastels doing little more than to make a mockery of my figure.

I had to admit a bit of envy when it came to such a needle point detail.

As my fingers danced across the keys, a rather obscure question floated into my ear, one that, quite frankly I hadn't been expecting.

"You and Natsuki..." Mai began slowly. "You're closer than mere friends. Do you share her interests too?"

"To what end?" I felt the need to ask. We had a great many interests that we shared, poets for example, cuisine for another, and the things we disagreed on made for interesting banter even if no agreement could be made.

Mai stumbled at my return of the matter, fumbling around for the right words, even if she spoke eloquently enough. "Interests that, among common company, would be too… perverse to speak of…" There she paused, clearing her throat unsteadily. I waited patiently for her to continue, although I had a pretty good idea of just what Mai had been hinting at. "So, to that end. You might not be able to speak freely about the matter in most social circles?"

Clever, if not abrupt. It would be annoying, if not for the fact that she stumbled around the question so candidly, if not shyly. Most would assume, but never ask. Here Mai's words were a question like that of a curious kitten, playing at the edge of a sandy beach. Only an unfavorable outcome would have resulted from such a thing, unless of course, the woman herself sought such safe harbor.

Still, I needed to clarify. "You mean to ask, do women interest me?"

"Yes." Mai nodded with a deepening blush. "That, specifically."

"Well, seeing as you clearly know of Natsuki's interests on the subject, I'll tell you mine." My eyes narrowed as one of my maids came in with some desired snacks, placing them beside Mai, nearest the windowsill. "It's not that men can't be interesting company. Merely that, they're the type of companions that I'd prefer to enjoy over a political debate, not the kind I'd amuse intimately."

"Unlike Natsuki, who merely hates them?" Mai provided, and I found that logic somewhat comical.

"Natsuki hates a great many things." I said with a soft laugh. "I doubt the gender of the person is ever the only reason. However, I'd coin that question of yours odd."

Mai seemed to shrug, a sort of playfulness in her violet eyes. "It's only as odd as you make it to be."

I laughed at this, offering a genuine smile. So, she was a flirt too, was she? "Odd enough to inquire of your own interests, I'd say."

"Neither here nor there," Mai said then, her eyes lingering on the piano keys. I stopped playing, and once again, her gaze found mine. "I mean to say; I'm not particularly bias to one or the other. Both to me are suitable, at least in the sense of attraction."

Uncertainty…

That's what I saw there, glimmering in a rather unusual way. It wasn't a fearful kind of look, something more akin to indifference. It wasn't entirely that either though, not with the confusion at the edges of the expression. One that I had no true name for. There were too many things woven into her words. Implications that I'd otherwise brush aside trapped beneath the surface.

It no longer became a laughing matter when it dawned on me that she was waiting for some type of approval.

Perhaps, she wasn't as comfortable discussing this as I'd first thought?

Without knowing it, I must have scooted closer. "Beyond that, then?"

"Attraction?"

The intensity of that word hit me like a ton of bricks. This was too fast a declaration, too unnerving a topic for discussion. "Yes."

"I can't explain it well." An uneasy smile sent my way, a blush for which I had no words, a sip of tea far too delicate, all of it much too consuming to me. She wasn't merely toying with me, tugging me along like I might expect. It was an honest answer. "There are things that are more important than others, but, those kinds of things should come naturally. So, speaking of them would be fairly unimportant. Mutual interests though, that would be something."

"Indeed." I'd said that far too happily for my own good. I stood from the bench we'd settled ourselves on, and reached out for the record player. I set for us a tune, and extended my hand to her. "Dancing, for you that is an interest, yes?"

"It is." Her hand touched mine, and I took the lead.

The old adage once again came back to me…

A beautiful woman dressed in white dances, and they say she is the most beautiful woman on the planet. A beautiful woman dressed in red dances, they call her a vixen, or a lady of the night. So what, I wonder, does that make this woman?

This aching beautiful woman, who dances along the floor in a white dress and carrot colored hair by night. This amazingly simple woman, who laughs so easily in a pastel sundress by day. This common blooded woman, undoing every tiny thing my mind has come to think of as resistance. If I were a lesser creature, I'd grovel at her feet.

Somehow, I feel this way most of all.

It is not a waltz she dances, but a tango, and I'm entwined with her, even from afar. She is stunning, a gift wrapped in only the purest parts of her identity.

That was what I thought the other night, when the dance ended and she exited the floor. Even then, she did so in a way that I do not always see. I enjoyed the sight surely, but a small part of me wished that the woman would dance once again.

Would let me guide her, as I do now.

A strong lead, yet, it seems as if I'm the one following along.

To her whims, her smile, and the warmth of her hand in mind, her body closer by the moment. This redheaded woman, that I'm droawn too, all because of the gift of sight...that sight given to me by crimson red eyes.

I suppose, I truly am a failure to my mother after all...


	2. Chapter 2

**Aristocracy: Fujino's Failure  
Chapter 2 of 2**

A letter came in the post, arriving with a white wax seal, pressed with a family crest.

 _Solutions,_

By the looks of it, Haruka was in full form when she wrote that, all of her bluster overriding commonsense. I was sure she meant 'salutations', or something equal to such a greeting. The script was done elegantly. With bold ink from what had to have been a quill. Haruka's handwriting, of that I was sure. I smiled to myself, and continued on.

 _I, Haruka Suzushiro, have decided to formally invite you, Shizuru Fujino, to the annual ball that's being thrown by my family once again. You should be expecting this but I'll say it again anyway. I'll see you there, as I do every year…oh, and you may, of course, bring a friend, not that you ever do. Maybe you should, Fujino. Think about it._

 _I mean it too, Fujino!_

The words were so simple they had me snickering to myself. Haruka would think that, wouldn't she? It was so common a thing in our lives, a formal ball, and yet the contempt was written cleanly across the paper like that of a curse. Clearly, she wasn't very happy. Not that I couldn't blame Haruka, not without blaming myself.

She had her own difficulties, and I found myself far too amused for my own good. I considered her final words below, as an afterthought. That I could - _that I should_ \- bring a guest. Maybe, Haruka was right...but, even if she was not, I took humor in her snide remark. That she didn't expect that I would indeed bring a suitor was likely obvious to everyone, not simply Haruka.

It was a fact of my life, a reality I never considered deeply anymore. Perhaps, that was a item on my long list of life that should change.

It was true though, I usually didn't find myself bringing guests to such formal gatherings. It was a time to hobnob with the local elite. Many of our mutual friends would be there, and like always, I fancied political discussion over scandal any day. That being said, the gossip queens were sure to be there once more, leading the charge into inebriation with such a gusto.

Likely, they'd quip that I would be remiss not to follow closely behind.

Of the staggering guest list, the usual names would make their appearance. All of the young heirs and heiresses coming out of the woodwork the same way vermin seeped from the sewers. I paid the difficulty of the matter no mind, and eagerly sent back correspondence that I would, in fact, be attending. Then I did the natural thing, I phoned Natsuki over for tea, seeing if she would once again attend another one of the more well-known parties of the year.

Naturally as well, Natsuki laughed in my face.

"As if! Shizuru, I don't know where you get the energy for that, but it's a pain in my behind. I'd rather not go to another one." She said, legs crossed, slouching across one of my armchairs with the same kind of stance I'd expect from a strapping young man. "A bunch of people flinging their wealth around, charity or not, it's too pretentious for my liking. Too idiotic too, in many ways."

"You plan to wire money instead?" I asked from behind my teacup. That was a possibility.

Natsuki shrugged, flicking some of her long hair behind her. Emerald eyes met mine. "I've been disowned from my extended family, remember?"

I smirked, Natsuki surely didn't take offence to the matter, but anyone else would have without question. Natsuki even tended to offend people by merely existing alone. I found it funny, Natsuki merely thought it to be trite. "You still have quite a bit of money, and your bloodline hails from both of your parents. You're still a big name, Natsuki Kuga, and you'd be sought after if you didn't come."

"Brandishing pitchforks?" Natsuki laughed.

"Or husbands, heaven forbid." I agreed.

She shuttered visibly, and lifted her teacup to her lips. As an avid coffee drinker, she sipped at my tea with caution. It was more robust than my usual selections, a rather dark black tea with a powerful aroma. She enjoyed it because she didn't make that disgusted face she usually made whenever she sampled something that she disliked. "They send me husbands, I'll send them a few rather strongly worded letters about where to shove those blasted proposals."

I knew what that meant, and even though I couldn't agree more, I found myself lost for words. She never had been a friendly person to most people, outright hated some passersby on principle. We had a very close friendship, and it went beyond that once, long ago. We no longer spoke of it, the old flame we used to have dying out before it ever truly lit.

It always left me wondering though, was it me? "Natsuki, forgive me if I'm being too forward, but, you don't seek companionship at all, do you?"

Natsuki shrugged. "I have a dog."

The statement somewhat floored me, but I merely nodded. "A dog is enough for you now, is it?"

"It isn't just a dog, though I sometimes wish it was. Mai mistakes herself as my house keeper and cook, so it isn't as if I actually need a companion." Rolling her tea around in her cup, she sat upright and leaned forward slightly. "Work keeps me busy, and that's where my time and energy goes. I have no time to amuse that sort of thing… you on the other hand…"

"Natsuki Kuga...you devil...are you implying that I have nothing to do with my time but to titter on with a consort or two?" I asked, eyebrow raised.

"Your job includes tittering on with several people," Natsuki retorted, which was true. I couldn't argue that. "If it wasn't for you, a lot of things wouldn't run smoothly. For example, Haruka's charity ball. You can't tell me that you don't have your nose in it somewhere. Keeping the peace, that's your job."

"With you lot? There are too many abrasive people not to." I said, looking directly at Natsuki. She had the decency to look embarrassed. "I wouldn't want to have any feathers ruffled with all of you strutting around like peacocks."

"I haven't the slightest idea what you're implying," Natsuki frowned, a little growl in her voice. "I keep to myself."

Her haughty indignity aside, I kept my inward smirk to myself. Natsuki was far too comical for her own good some days. "On the subject of the ball though, if you were going to come, I'd encourage you to think about inviting Mai again."

"I see, and if I don't decide to come, then what will you do?"

I laughed. "I would invite her, my own sanity willing, of course. Since it seems you don't have the slightest bit of interest in her, I thought I might offer the poor woman a bit of entertainment at least."

"I keep telling you, my interest is not my problem." Natsuki sighed again. "It's my work. I like it too much to give it up."

"Allow me then, perhaps?" I asked, tilting my head ever so slightly, a teasing little note that made her roll her eyes.

"Mai's more than you bargain for." Natsuki shrugged, refusing to elaborate further. "I'm not her keeper you know."

Natsuki neither confirmed nor denied my suspicions about her relationship with Mai. I took Natsuki's reaction to mean they were friends and little more. She had a possessive streak as wide as a gully, often when I least expected it. I had to remind myself that such protectiveness extended to friends too, since Natsuki has so few.

I'd have to be delicate, a skill that when it came to romance, failed me utterly.

...  
(Suzushiro Estate)

Mai had accepted my invitation, a relief honestly, as I wasn't positive if she would or not. The night I picked her up, the sky was colored with pink hues that stretched across the horizon. Breathlessly, I'd extended my hand to her, and we made off towards the elaborate Suzushiro estate. At the time we exchanged pleasantries, nothing too complicated or deep. Merely topics one would expect from the beginning of a new friendship.

If, one would call it that…

In any case, we spoke of the weather, our current hobbies, and the nature of horses, their breeding particularly. It was enjoyable, the way that she said simply what I would have usually complicated in the matter. Mai was, more or less, far too willing to banter about anything. We drifted briefly over politics, and skittered over current economic affairs. Off handed comments mostly, casually sprinkled in along with the rest of our long travel banter.

The fact that she was able to keep up on such topics amused me, she was much like Natsuki. Yet, so different. I enjoyed those kinds of topics, imbibing deeply in them like some would a fine wine. With due recourse, we arrived with the party in full swing, all of the expected faces already well into their usual social circles.

"Mai, I believe I should tell you, the Fujino namesake carries a particular weight."

"A weight greater than that of Natsuki's?" Mai asked.

I had to nod. I had no other option, because it was the truth. "Natsuki's been displaced, I have not. You can see the implication of status this brings upon your person, and my own as well. Fortuitous, perhaps, yet maybe not so as well."

"That I am at your side?" She could see what I was saying. "This worries you?"

"No." It did not worry me. "It is merely the fact of the matter."

"Yet, it still is a fact you bring up." Mai pressed, her hands warmed mine. "Are you worried after all, mindful of what might be said?"

"No, not at all. However, Mai, you are correct. People will gossip." I informed her of this gently. I had no way of knowing how she would respond. "That you are at my side warrants other implications. Some do know of my, fairer preferences, shall we say."

"I share them…" Mai merely said to me, a small laugh in her tone. "So, let them banter on till their heart's content. I am here with you."

"Shall I address you as merely a friend, or as my date?" I felt the need to ask, because weather or not Mai took an interest in me was an entirely different matter. To call her my date would give her unquestionable status, and in turn, lower my own just ever so slightly.

Not that the little details bothered me, but, it would draw attention to the matter either way.

Mai seemed to think about this, rolling it around in her head the same way that a cat would an object of interest. Then, with a tiny little smile playing on her lips, she spoke what I had most desired to hear. "That entirely depends. Would you say I've gathered your attentions?"

I grinned. "You know you have."

"A date then." She told me as she laced her fingers with mine.

She looked flawless in her dress, a fuchsia color that was simple in its design, and I felt that it suited her. It brought out the gentleness in her eyes, and contrasted sharply with her flawless skin. Maybe it was the blush on her cheeks, the slightest hints of make-up, or that glistening balm on her lips. I wasn't entirely sure, but that she allowed herself to be mine for this night was something I took a great pleasure in.

Too much pleasure, perhaps.

I wanted others to look at this woman, to see her hand in mine, and to notice exactly what that might mean. To murmur about it, consider it. If I could accomplish that much, surely all in this room would gossip, speaking weeks later about how we commanded the attention befitting the rumor mill. It would prove amusing, if little else.

Truth be told, I wanted others to be envious, because, Mai was completely and utterly beautiful.

My dreams came to a halt as I realized that indeed, this would stir the pot, and it was a rather deep pot, truth be told. I guided Mai over to a rather safe batch of women that I knew personally. All of them were intellectual enough to see through my introduction for what it truly implied. I was thankful for that.

"A catty little catch you have there, Shizuru." Haruka said in her usual sarcastic tone, displeased about being the impromptu center of attention.

"She is, isn't she?" Honesty, because I could offer no more than that. A glimmer of hope that Mai would forever be mine found its way into my heart then. "A wonderful catch at that too. I suppose I should have been a fisherman."

Disgusted, Haruka rolled her eyes at me, but Mai had laughed.

Had enjoyed my banter, enjoyed the way I'd flaunt her, even though part of me hoped she'd allow herself to never be more than mine. That no one else would ever see more than me. Know more than me, have her eye, more than me. I wanted to be her paramour, her dream, the mirror to her soul.

I wanted that, desired it so much that I'd even reached out to cup her face. Taking my thumb and brushing it across her lip when no one was looking. The simple action, how she leaned into it, I wanted more. To taste her, to feel her, and to feel as though I'd never again have to let her go. This woman, this insanely captivating woman.

She looked to me, like that of an angel.

A perfect angel, and I'd taken her out to the balcony where we'd first met, looked out to the swans that fluttered in the pond below.

"I hoped that you would enjoy my company tonight, just as I have to yours." I told her, I hoped that would be enough for her to look me in the eyes intensely. I wanted her to understand the nature of my wants, the needs were things too explicit, too rare and confounding to even myself. "I wonder, if I have your attentions, just as you have mine."

"Is it even a question in your mind?" She asked me.

If it were not for the softness in her eyes, yes, it would have been. Yet, Mai had smiled at me, had been kind enough to notice me…notice my desires of her. I was entirely soothed by that, but also emboldened further. "Yes." I'd said softly. "It was indeed. You must understand, I am…" I paused, unsure of how to say it. "I am taken with you, interested in those particular interests in which we discussed. I would very much like that, to share in that, with you."

And she smiled again.

In doing so, I leaned in ever so slightly. I wondered if she would do the same.

A heartbeat passed us by…then another…I saw her look to me, then down to my lips, and back up once more. Her gaze returning to the long and vast night sky. Maybe she was shy, but, I could understand the hesitation. I leaned in just a little more…and this time she closed the gap. Crossing the threshold, the line a barrier between us, now gone… her kiss as perfect as I expected.

Soft, almost timid, almost sweet, and almost enough to sweep me away from the reality I was in.

I'd fallen for this woman, I knew that now. I was an utter failure not only to my mother, but to my own pedigree, my own goals…and even my own desires. I'd lived alone so long, that I never once considered another at my side…not until this night, when she stole my very breath from my lungs, and I was powerless to her kiss.

Shackled by her meaning…by what she was.

A beautiful woman dressed in white dances, and they say she is the most beautiful woman on the planet. A beautiful woman dressed red dances, they call her a vixen, or a lady of the night. In black, she is a contemporary beauty, and in sunny yellow, she is most at peace with herself.

Yet, Mai was more than that…more than the many colors of such a thing.

"I am also interested in those interests…" She murmured to me before capturing my lips once more.

It seemed so simple, so unlike the rules I'd grown up by, that I merely accepted it.

Whatever fate of it may come...but, it was clear that I would dirty my blood for this woman...I'd already decided that.


End file.
